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Friday, December 2, 2011

Sometimes...

So tiny and small and curious about the world around her. She has the cutest little smile in the last photo. And such big bright eyes in the middle picture. Let me tell you a little bit about her...

I don't personally know her. Have never met her. I stumbled upon a blog (which I will link to soon) where I got to "meet" her.

This little girl's name is Katie or Katerina. She is 9-and-a-half. That would be 9-and-a-half years, not months. Yes, I know it seems unbelievable!

Here is Bianca. She is 8 years old. Spot the difference?

Katie weighs around 10 pounds, 9 ounces (4.7kg) and is 29 inches (73.66cm) long. Her foot is 4 inches (10.16cm) long, her upper thigh circumference is 5 inches (12.7cm), her upper arm circumference is about 3 inches (7.62cm). She is tiny. To give you an idea - Caitlyn was 10 pound 7 when she was born. How did this little person become the tiny whisper, a tiny little bird that she's become?

From birth she was "dumped" into an orphanage somewhere in Europe - I don't actually know which country to be honest. I imagine she was thrown away because she had Down Syndrome (as it often happens). When she was "found" she was confined to her cot day in and day out, taken out for bottle feeding and nappy changes and that was pretty much it. This child was never loved, she never received any stimulation, very little interaction and was severely malnourished. Just recently this tiny little whisper of a child was rescued and adopted by a family in the US. They have a long road ahead of them and I imagine the process will be incredibly slow.

Just imagine what she could have been if she was loved from the start! I hope this little girl will learn to trust, will learn to feel safe and loved and wanted and cared for. She must have an amazing fighting spirit to have survived the conditions she did for so long.

It breaks my heart to know that there are children living like this day in and day out. I look at my kids and yes, sometimes we feel a bit frustrated when they keep arguing or fighting. But I cannot ever imagine subjecting my kids to the conditions Katie had to live with for 9 and a half long years! It absolutely breaks my heart!

Today when you see your kids, give them an extra hug, tell them you love them and when they've gone to sleep, quietly tuck them in and whisper that you care for them. Because when you look at the photos of Katie, it is heartbreaking to know the damage it can do when a child is neglected and not given any love!

So sad to see children being abused like this. They did not ask to come into this world, they were made by the ones who asked/wanted them. They did not asked to be disabled. Such a sad story. Will follow the blog.

Hi LeaI just read the link you gave us to follow about Katie. What wonderful people to take on such a task and do it so lovingly. It is so sad to know that many, many children live like this in orphanages. It is very hard to read and see. Thank God for people like this family in Pennsylvania.Rosemary